Broken Bridges
by Landi McClellan
Summary: SKxOC. Seven years ago, Kaiba broke a girl's heart. Can he mend the bridges he burned, or are some too broken to be fixed? Chapter 6 now up and running
1. Chapter 1

Broken Bridges

Disclaimer: This story is not based on the CMT movie with the same title. I am simply using the title. I also do not own Lindsey Haun's song "Broken", but the song itself will play a small part in the story. I also do not own Yu-Gi-Oh.

**Chapter 1**

"Kaiba, wait! Hey! Slow down a minute, will ya? Oh for the love of…Kaiba!"

Two men entered the doors of Raynie Days, an upscale bar in central Domino. The taller of the two was Seto Kaiba. At the age of twenty-four, he had more money in his pocket than many others could earn in a lifetime. He was quite attractive with a slender but muscular physique. He was fair-skinned, but in a way that worked for him. His chocolate-brown hair fell over his forehead and ended just above piercing blue eyes and fell into a point at the nape of his neck. Standing at about 6'1", he wore a black turtleneck sweater and dark blue denims over a pair of black boots.

A few seconds after Kaiba's almost unnoticeable entrance, a loud blond named Joey Wheeler burst through the door. His face was red and his chest was heaving, possibly from having to sprint after the long-legged brunet (who had practically sprinted himself, but looked twice as dignified). His shaggy blond hair fell around his face in a thick curtain as he struggled to regain his composure. Once that was accomplished, he straightened to his full height at 5'10" and narrowed his chocolate brown eyes in what was supposed to be an intimidating glare.

"Hey Kaiba, what gives? You call me and ask me to come here with you, and you practically ditch me once you park the car. If you wanted to leave me behind, why'd you call me in the first place?"

Kaiba spun on his heel and clapped a large hand over the blond's animated mouth. His sapphire eyes seemed to scream "Shut the hell up before I make you!" He raised the index finger of his free hand to his lips in a gesture for his friend to silence himself. Joey looked at Kaiba with confusion spilling from every pore on his face. Kaiba finally removed his hand and Joey continued his rant, just in a softer voice.

"Kaiba, why did you ask me here? Couldn't you ask Yugi or Mai? Hell, I'm sure _Tea_ would have said yes. Why'd you ask _me_ of all people?"

"Because," Kaiba responded in a voice barely above a whisper, "it's about Artemis."

Joey's brows knit in frustration as he tried to remember why the name sounded so familiar. Kaiba, seeing this and on the brink of strangling the blond (who had been pestering him with questions on the way there), sighed and rubbed the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger.

"Artemis Sloane, Wheeler. Remember? Senior year? The girl I went out with?" The brunet fought the urge to slap himself in the forehead upon seeing Joey's blank look. "Your sister's best friend?" Kaiba hissed in frustration.

Joey blinked for a few moments, before connecting Kaiba's clues. "Oh yeah! You mean the one that you kno—?"

Again, Kaiba interrupted him by clapping his hand over the blond's mouth. Then, after checking to make sure that no one had overheard, he nodded. Joey's eyes widened and he nodded vigorously as if to say "oh yeah, I get it. We're on the same page now." Sighing with frustration, Kaiba removed his hand and wiped it on his thigh while muttering something about dog germs.

"Please put your hands together for the lovely, the talented, Artemis Sloane!"

Kaiba's head shot up as he heard the familiar name. He looked towards a darkened corner of the bar, only to notice that the whole bar had gone dark. A makeshift stage was set up in the corner with an array of colored lights arranged above it. A single white spotlight was shining in the center of the stage on a girl with long auburn hair clutching a microphone. Even from his spot across the room, he knew it was the same girl he had fallen in love with so many years earlier.

"Hello everyone," Artemis said into the microphone. "Tonight, I'm going to sing a song I wrote. It's called 'Broken'." She cleared her throat and nodded towards the band standing behind her. Music began to play and she clutched the microphone to her lips. "_I wake up to a sunny day, not a cloud up in the sky. And then it starts to rain. My defenses hit the ground and they shatter all around, so open and exposed._"

Kaiba and Joey stood rooted in their spots. Joey fell silent and sank backwards onto a barstool. Kaiba stared wide-eyed at the girl whose heart he had broken seven years earlier. Artemis had been beautiful as a teenager, but she looked even more so now. Her body was still slender and muscular, but still very much feminine. She wore a long white skirt and a dark violet spaghetti-strap shirt. A white cotton scarf was wrapped around her neck and her long auburn hair was pulled back into a bun.

"_But I found strength in the struggle. Face to face with my trouble._" She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. "_When you're broken in a million little pieces, and you're trying, but you can't hold on anymore. Every tear falls down for a reason. Don't just stop believing in yourself when you're broken_." She closed her eyes and pulled the microphone off its stand. She stepped off the stage and walked onto the floor, occasionally stopping at tables as she sang.

"_Little girl don't be so blue. I know what you're going through. Don't let it beat you up. Heaven knows that getting scars only makes you who you are, only makes you who you are._"

Kaiba's eyes watched Artemis as she moved through the bar, coming closer and closer to him with each and every step. He was hypnotized by her voice, the same voice that had pulled him to her when they had first met.

"_No matter how much your heart is aching. There is beauty in the breaking. Yeeeeeeeeeeah. When you're broken in a million little pieces and you're trying, but you can't hold on anymore. Every tear falls down for a reason. Don't just stop believing in yourself when you're broken._"

Artemis was only a couple of yards away and getting closer. She started to move towards Kaiba and Joey, but her eyes were looking back towards the main crowd. When she looked towards the people she would be serenading next, her heart stopped in her chest. But just as quickly as it had happened, it vanished and she continued to sing. She got right up in Kaiba's face and sang with more passion than she had ever sung before.

"_Better days are gonna find you once again. Every piece will find its place. When you're broken. When you're broken._" The music rose to a crescendo and she whipped back around to the main crowd, but Kaiba could tell that she was singing to him now.

"_When you're broken in a million little pieces and you're trying but you can't hold on anymore. Every tear falls down for a reason. Don't just stop believing in yourself when you're broken. Oh, when you're broken. When you're broken. When you're broken._"

As she neared the end of her song, she crossed back to the stage. As the music died, she replaced the microphone in the stand and bowed respectfully to her audience. She blew kisses to them and thanked them before stepping off stage. She quickly glanced towards the back of the bar, only to find that neither Kaiba nor Joey were there.


	2. Chapter 2

Broken Bridges

Disclaimer: I do not own Seto Kaiba, Joey Wheeler, Serenity Wheeler, or the city of Domino. If I did…well, I'll leave that to the imagination. And I do not own Sherrie Austin's song "Streets of Heaven".

A/N: This chapter is dedicated to Journey Maker, Kawaii Chibi Kitty Angel, and moonangel93. Thank you so much for reviewing. And I hope you like this chapter (but if you don't, don't be afraid to say so). There will be some lyrics that do not fit the situation, but for the most part, it does.

_Italics:_ lyrics

**Chapter 2**

Later that night, Artemis stood at her kitchen counter pouring herself a glass of whiskey. Since she had reached drinking age, she had developed a taste for the amber liquid. She set the bottle aside and raised the glass to her lips. She swallowed a bit less than half of the glass's contents in one gulp. Then reaching for the bottle, she refilled the glass.

Just as she raised it to her lips to take a drink, the phone rang. With a sigh, she set the glass on the counter and reached for the cordless handset. She glanced at the caller ID and smiled when she saw her best friend's number on the screen.

"Hi Serenity," she said as she walked over to the living room, drink in hand.

"Artemis, are you okay? Joey just called me saying that he and Kaiba saw you at Raynie's."

Artemis sighed. "Let me guess, Joey called asking you for my number so he could give it to Kaiba."

Serenity giggled. "Hon, you couldn't be further from the truth. Joey did call on Kaiba's behalf, but it wasn't to try and get your number. Kaiba was enough of a man to understand that you were angry with him. He just wanted to let you know that Kaiba is sorry and that he wants to talk to you."

Artemis sighed and downed half of the remaining whiskey in the glass. It caught in her throat and she coughed for a few seconds. Her face began to flush and her eyes widened incredulously.

"He what?"

"Artemis, give the guy a chance. Come on, it's been seven years."

"But Serenity", Artemis protested", where was he for those seven years? Oh yeah, he was here in Domino while I was living with you in Kyoto. Never once did he try to call me or even find me. He doesn't deserve my time," she spat bitterly.

Serenity sighed. "Artemis, does anyone know?"

"Know what?"

"Does Kaiba know what happened to Melissa?" she asked quietly.

Artemis sighed and downed the rest of her whiskey. "No," she said stiffly. "He doesn't know."

"Well Artemis," Serenity said, "even though Kaiba did abandon you and the baby, I think he has the right to know about his daughter."

Artemis closed her eyes and sank back into the couch. "I suppose you're right." She sighed again. "I'll give him a call."

"Thank you. I'll talk to you later, okay? Bye Artie."

"Bye Seren," she said as she disconnected the call. She raised her glass to take another drink, but frowned when she realized the glass was empty. With a heavy sigh, she went to the kitchen and placed the glass in the sink. "I'll call him in the morning," she said as she scrawled a quick reminder on a yellow Post-it pad by the phone.

-Flashback-

"Miss Sloane and Mr. Newman?" said a doctor as he stepped out of the blanched hospital room into the equally blank hallway.

Artemis, then twenty-three, rose to her feet. Her fiancé of two years, Chris, rose alongside her.

"Yes Doctor?"

Two weeks prior, Melissa Sloane was playing in her front yard with her mother. Her ball rolled into the street and she ran down to get it. As she did, a car was speeding down the street. Unfortunately, at the same time, Melissa tripped over the curb directly in the vehicle's path. Before Artemis could blink or yell for her child, her daughter was lying on the ground. Every day since then was a struggle. Melissa's arm and leg were broken and she had broken two ribs. The doctors could not give her strong pain medication because of her young age. But as the days went on, her condition grew worse.

"Your daughter has lapsed into a coma. The impact of the crash caused a hemorrhage in the lower brain. She might not make it. If she does, God willing, she will be severely brain damaged." He reached out and softly touched Artemis's shoulder. "I'm sorry."

Artemis's blood ran cold through her veins. She gave a slight nod as the doctor walked away. Her dark gray eyes stared blankly ahead as she entered room. She pulled the yellow plastic chair, perhaps the only colorful thing in the room, to her seven-year-old daughter's bedside. She took the small pale hand in hers and tears began to flow down her face.

"Hello baby. It's Mommy. Can you hear me?" she whispered through her tears. The girl's small chest rose and fell with each feeble breath she took. Artemis looked up at the clock on the wall and clasped her hands in prayer on the edge of her daughter's hospital bed. Chris stood behind her and laid his hand on her shoulder.

"_Hello God, it's me again. 2:00 AM, Room 304._

_Visiting hours are over, time for our bedside tug of war. _

_This sleeping child between us may not make it through the night._

_I'm fighting back the tears as she fights for her life._

_Well, it must be kind of crowded on the streets of Heaven,_

_So tell me, what do you need her for?_

_Don't you know one day she'll be your little girl forever?_

_But right now, I need her so much more._

_She's much too young to be on her own,_

_Barely just turned seven_

_So who will hold her hand when she crosses the streets of Heaven?_

_Tell me God, do you remember the wishes that she made,_

_As she blew out the candles on her last birthday cake?_

_She wants to ride a pony when she's big enough._

_She wants to marry her Daddy when she's all grown up._

_Well, it must be kind of crowded on the streets of Heaven,_

_So tell me, what do you need her for?_

_Don't you know one day she'll be your little girl forever?_

_But right now, I need her so much more._

_She's much too young to be on her own,_

_Barely just turned seven_

_So who will hold her hand when she crosses the streets of Heaven?_

_Lord, don't you know she's my angel_

_You've got plenty of your own_

_And I know you'll hold a place for her_

_But she's already got a home_

_Well, I don't know if you're listening_

_But praying is all that's left to do_

_So I ask you, Lord, have mercy. You lost a son once, too._

_And it must be kind of crowded,_

_On the streets of Heaven._

_So tell me, what do you need her for?_

_Don't you know one day she'll be your little girl forever?_

_But right now, I need her so much more._

_Lord, I know once you've made up your mind,_

_There's no use in beggin'._

_So if you take her with you today, will you make sure she looks both ways?_

_And would you hold her hand when she crosses the streets of Heaven?_

_The streets of Heaven_."

Then, the slow and steady beeping of the heart monitor slowed to a flat beep. Artemis's head shot up as she glanced at the monitor. She looked at her daughter's face. Her downy auburn hair, so much like her own, framed her face like an angelic halo. Artemis leaned over and kissed her daughter's forehead. She looked over at Chris and nodded. She stood back from the bed and let him say a final goodbye. When Chris walked back to her, the two solemnly walked out of the room.

-End Flashback-

A/N: I hope you readers liked this chapter. Please review and let me know what you think.


	3. Chapter 3

Broken Bridges

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh.

A/N: Thank you to my reviewers: Journey Maker and moonangel93. I'm so glad that you liked my first draft of chapter 2 and I hope that you liked the rewrite (if you read it). So without further ado, here is chapter 3.

"blah"-dialogue

'_blah'-thoughts_

**Chapter 3**

The following morning, Artemis woke up with a massive headache, but nothing a couple of Tylenol and a cup of her favorite tea couldn't fix. She sat on a barstool at her counter and stared at the phone. The Post-it note saying "Call Seto Kaiba" lay on the counter in front of her. She sighed and picked up the phone. Almost immediately, she set it back down in the cradle.

"I can't do it," she said aloud to no one. She held her head with her hands and sighed. _'You know what? I'll take a shower, and then I'll call him.'_ With a final nod, she walked away towards her bathroom. Seconds later, she ran back into the kitchen, picked up the phone, and dialed the number (which she suddenly happened to remember). It wasn't until it rang that she realized what she was doing. With a surprised squeak, she slammed the phone back on the cradle. She turned around and walked into her bathroom to take a shower.

Meanwhile, in the Kaiba mansion, things weren't quite as frenzied. The elder of the two brothers was fast asleep in his bedroom. On any given Saturday, he would most likely be found in his home office typing away at his laptop until early the next morning. This particular Saturday, however, was different. After he got home from the bar, he lied awake in his bed thinking about her, what could have been if they had stayed together, and most of all, his baby. Unlike some people who never lost their pregnancy weight, Artemis looked just as she did before she had the baby. But he couldn't say for sure. When he last saw her, she was three months pregnant and a lot could happen in six months. He wondered what the child looked like now. Was it a boy or a girl?

After seeing her that night, a large part of him was ridden with guilt, although he would never admit it to anyone. When Artemis had needed him most, he wasn't there for her. Now, as a single mother, it couldn't have been easy for her. He wondered if his child was there that night, perhaps sitting in the back somewhere watching his/her mother sing.

These thoughts kept Kaiba awake for most of the night and continued to plague him in his dreams. He dreamt of what his life would have been like with Artemis. They would have lived together in his mansion, just Kaiba, his brother Mokuba, Artemis, and their child. They would have gone to the park every weekend. He wouldn't work as much as he had been these past few years. He'd smile and laugh a whole lot more.

The what-ifs of Kaiba's dream were interrupted when a tall, ebony-haired figure silently entered his room. Slowly, it tiptoed across the plush navy carpet to the slumbering CEO's bedside with a handful of ice cubes clenched tightly in one fist. The figure reached out and placed a dripping ice cube on the sleeping man's neck, then quickly ducked down. In a split second, Kaiba bolted upright in his bed streaming colorful curses like the Trevi fountain does water. Once the initial shock faded, he slid his legs over the edge of the bed, nearly tripping over the crouched and snickering figure of his younger brother, Mokuba.

"Good morning, Seto. Did you sleep well?" he chirped.

"Mokuba, you are seventeen years old. Don't you think you're a little too old to be doing stuff like this?" he groaned wearily.

Mokuba laughed as he dusted off his knees and rose to his full height. "Seto, you are twenty-two years old. Don't you think you're a little too young to be acting like such a hard-ass? Come on, it's a Saturday. Let's do something together."

"Such as?" he asked as he walked into his walk-in closet.

Mokuba sighed and followed him. He grabbed a random pair of jeans and a random shirt and thrust them in his brother's hands. "I don't know. But when was the last time you and I did something fun together? It's been ages and we both have nothing to do today."

Seto opened his mouth to protest, but decided not to. Mokuba was right. He didn't have anything planned for today, much to his surprise. With a reluctant sigh, he gently pushed Mokuba out of the closet and walked into the bathroom, closing and locking the door behind him.

"How does this sound? When I'm done, we can go out for breakfast and go to the park. After that, it's all up to you," Kaiba shouted through the bathroom door.

Mokuba beamed. "Really? Sweet! Seto, you are the best," he shouted joyfully as he dashed out of his brother's room and into his own to get ready.

Seto just laughed and shook his head. "Kids," he muttered to himself. "They grow up too fast."

Later that morning, Seto and Mokuba were sitting on one of the many park benches eating ice cream and chatting away. Actually, Mokuba was doing more of the chatting. His chocolate ice cream cone was melting all over his hand while Seto's vanilla cone was almost gone.

"I saw her last night," Seto said when Mokuba had finally stopped talking.

"Who?"

"Artemis Sloane. Remember? That girl I dated in senior year?"

Mokuba licked his ice cream thoughtfully. Seto had dated a few people in senior year. Most of them were short relationships, but only one was actually serious.

"Oh, you mean the chick with the dark hair and dark eyes, the one that you went out with for five months?" When Seto nodded, he continued. "Ah. I liked her. What happened? Did she move away?"

Seto sighed. In the seven years that had passed since he had seen her, never once had he mentioned that Artemis was pregnant with his child. He had always wanted to set a good example for the boy and telling him that he had a pregnant girlfriend in high school was not exactly an example of responsibility. Then again, neither was abandoning her.

"Yes Mokuba. She moved away. And I guess she's been back in Domino for a while."

"Really? Well, then you should see her. You're not dating anybody and you do have that annual banquet thingy in five months. It's never too early to ask."

_'But is it too late to apologize?'_ Kaiba wondered.

A/N: Sorry guys. No SetoxOC interaction here, just a bit of brotherly fluff. Hope you liked this chapter. Please review.


	4. Chapter 4

Broken Bridges

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh.

A/N: This chapter is dedicated to my reviewers for Chapter 3. I love you all!

**Chapter 4**

Seto Kaiba is human. He enjoys several things, much more than he likes to let on. His favorite movie is "Gone with the Wind". His favorite color is green. He enjoys sleeping in late and reading poetry. He doesn't like math or science, although he has excelled in both. He wanted to be an engineer before he became the president of Kaiba Corp. He doesn't like country-western or rap music. He had nightmares for a week after watching "The Ring". Seto Kaiba is human. And as most people do, he wondered if God enjoyed screwing with him.

That's certainly what it felt like when he stuck his key in the ignition, only to find that the battery to his beloved Miata had died. So there he was, sitting in the driver's seat, in the dark, hands on the wheel, staring into space, and waiting. What he was waiting for, he couldn't say. There were no other cars in the parking lot and it didn't look like any would be coming in anytime soon.

Why didn't he just use his cell phone and call for a tow truck? Ironically, he had dropped his cell phone in the pond earlier that afternoon while playing a game of tag with his brother. Needless to say, it was ruined beyond quick repair. In that case, he could have used his brother's phone, right. Well, he could have…if Mokuba had thought to charge his phone the night before.

Therefore, Seto had decided that it would be better waiting in the safety of his vehicle and hoping that help would arrive soon rather than walking for an hour on a dark autumn night and possibly catching his death of cold. So far, an hour and a half had passed and no one had offered to help. Then again, he also refused to ask for help because "the car was fine and would start up any second". But here they were, an hour and a half later, and the car had yet to start.

"Come on Seto, we've been sitting here for forever! Don't you think it's time to give it a rest?"

Seto looked at the whining teen beside him and sighed.

"You're right Mokuba. We might as well try to catch some sleep here," he said as he reclined the driver's seat. He closed his eyes and just before sleep overcame him…

_Tap, tap, tap._

Seto's eyes shot open and he bolted upright. He looked out the window and saw a woman in a white jogging suit with a light blue stripe along the side knocking on the window. He rubbed his eyes with his fists and pulled the seat upright. He opened the door and stepped out into the chilly autumn night.

_"Oh my God"_, Artemis thought as Seto stepped out of his car. She had gone for a jog and was heading out of the park when she saw the little black car sitting alone in the parking lot. She could see two people sitting in the car and she wondered if they needed somewhere to stay. She knocked on the window to get the attention of the would-be driver. She was surprised when he opened the door and even more so to realize that it was her former beloved.

"Hello, I asked you a question", Seto said loudly.

Artemis was shaken from her reverie and she dug the toe of her white Puma sneakers into the black asphalt nervously. She lowered her eyes to the ground.

"I'm surprised you don't recognize me," she said quietly.

Seto paused, trying to wonder how he could know this woman. Because of the poor lighting, he could not distinguish her hair color. It could have been black, brown, or a shade of either one. Her eyes looked dark. To him, she looked like an average person.

"Listen lady, there are millions of people in Japan. There are thousands of them in Domino. I've dealt with a lot of women in my time…"

"Seto, it's me, Artemis", she interrupted.

A heavy silence ensued. Seto blinked, grabbed her by the shoulders, and repositioned their bodies so that he could see her face better in what little light there was. He analyzed her face and recognized her as the girl he had seen the night before. And in an instant, he swept her into his arms and pressed his cheek to her hair. His heart of ice had seemed to melt, and the icy water poured from his eyes in tears of joy and disbelief. He couldn't believe it. The woman he had pined for, the mother of his child was finally in his arms.

Artemis blinked at the suddenness of the embrace. Then she slowly wrapped her arms around his torso, as she had done so many years ago. She began to cry, although she did not know the reason for doing so.

"_Is this real?_" she thought. "_Are we really here after so long?_"

The two separated briefly. Seto placed his hands on either side of her neck and leaned down to kiss her on the lips. His movements were slow and unsure. She waited, anticipating the imminent kiss. Their lips touched for the first time in at least seven years. Years of longing filled their bodies and electric shocks of passion coursed through their veins. Then the kiss ended as suddenly as it began.

Another awkward silence ensued. Seto and Artemis dabbed at their mouths, both surprised at what had just happened. Both wanted to speak, but neither knew what to say.

"So…" Artemis said, "What brings you out here?"

"Uh, Mokuba and I, uh, we went to park and uh, you know, caught up. We've both been very busy."

Artemis smiled.

"You know Seto, there has only been one other time when you have used the word 'uh' in a sentence. That was when you asked me out on our first date. Do you remember that?"

Seto smiled fondly.

"Ah yes, I remember. It was about a month after school had started. You stayed after school for choir practice and I was sitting in the wings of the theater watching you. When practice ended, you walked past me. I called out your name. I had it all planned out. I was going to ask you to join me for dinner at Little Italy on 34th Street that Friday night. But when you looked at me, I suddenly forgot what I was going to ask you."

He laughed, then cleared his throat.

Artemis sighed and looked over at the car, which suddenly reminded her of the reason for her and Seto meeting in the first place.

"Oh yeah, that reminds me…did you need a car or anything?"

Seto blinked, looked back at his car, then looked back at Artemis.

"Yeah, the battery died. Mokuba's cell phone died and mine fell in the fountain. I had given the staff, including my drivers, a day off. So we were going to stay here until morning."

Artemis nodded slowly.

"Well, if you guys want to, I could call a cab to take you guys home. It's only 9 PM, so they're still operating."

Seto sighed. He had hoped that she would invite him and Mokuba over to her house. It was Saturday after all. He didn't have to go to work and Mokuba didn't have school. He might finally meet his son or daughter.

"No, it's okay. The last time I took a cab, the cabbie told a friend of his who told a friend. The next morning, the papers said that I lost all my money in a bad investment and I was reduced to having to rely on public transportation. They didn't know that my cars were at the mechanic's for a tune-up."

"Oh", Artemis said, "would you like to come over to my house? I have a spare room that you and Mokuba could share."

Seto smiled. Not quite the offer he'd had in mind, but it will do.

"I'd like that", he said. Then he woke Mokuba up and the three of them walked a couple of blocks to Artemis's house.

A/N: Sorry for the super long wait. I disappeared for a while, but I'm back with inspiration for my story. Here are the next couple of chapters of BB.


	5. Chapter 5

Broken Bridges

Disclaimer: I do not own Yu-Gi-Oh. I also do not own Kelly Clarkson's song "Never Again".

A/N: If there is some Seto OOCness, forgive me. I needed something to move the story along.

**Chapter 5**

"Bienvenue chez moi messieurs," Artemis said regally as Seto and Mokuba crossed the threshold of her humble studio apartment overlooking the city. Three large glass windows formed the eastern wall. The kitchen and bedrooms lined the north side of the apartment. An entertainment center, complete with television, DVD player, VCR, and surround-sound stereo, was set up along the south side. The north and south walls were pale yellow, the western wall surrounding the door was black, and the inset wall surrounding the bedroom doors and extending into the kitchen was painted red-orange. For a woman who lived by herself, she had quite a bit of furniture: a sofa, two end tables, one armchair, a lounge chair, a dinner table with six chairs, and three barstools against the kitchen counter.

"For a single woman, you certainly have a lot of furniture," Seto said aloud.

Artemis looked up at him from behind the kitchen counter. ("I thought she was right behind me," Seto mused.) She smiled as she raised a small glass of apple-flavored vodka to her lips. She sipped the crystal-clear liquid slowly as she looked around the empty apartment.

"I know. Originally, I had looked into a smaller apartment, but Chris had insisted on this one," she said as she took another sip.

Seto felt a slight tug at his heart when Artemis mentioned Chris's name, but shrugged it off. _"He must be her real estate agent",_ he rationalized, _"Nothing to get jealous over."_ He nodded slowly in agreement.

"It suits you," he said.

"Thanks," Artemis replied as she set her now-empty glass in the sink. "Come on. Let me show you to your bedrooms."

Mokuba and Seto followed the auburn-haired songstress, but stopped in front of a large framed portrait.

"Who's this?" Mokuba asked.

Artemis paused in the doorway of one of the three bedrooms. She turned to face the portrait in question. Her eyes softened and she sighed as she leaned against the doorjamb.

"Mokuba, that was your niece, Melissa. She died last February, three months after her seventh birthday," she said, more for Seto's benefit than Mokuba's.

"You mean…?" Seto began.

Artemis nodded and looked away. She gulped to fight the tears that threatened to fall. A few escaped and she wiped them away with the sleeve of her white track suit.

"When she died, a part of me went with her. You don't really know pain until you've lost a child, especially when she's so young."

Seto awkwardly wrapped his arms around the tearful woman. What could he say to a woman who used to be his girlfriend who is also the mother of a child he had never seen? Should he say "I'm sorry for your loss" when the loss is also his? Then again, is the loss really his to bear if he never knew the child in the first place? Should he grieve? Was it right to hug a woman he had abandoned so long ago?

Although he expected her to shy away from him, the teary woman just let him embrace her. He pulled away slowly, tilted her face up to his, and dabbed at her eyes with the sleeve of his jacket.

"I don't know what to say," he admitted. "I wish I could have been there."

"Seto, this is not the time for this," she whispered. She cleared her throat and smiled reassuringly at Mokuba. "Mokuba, hon, this can be your room," she said, gesturing to the room behind her.

Mokuba turned away from a picture of Artemis and Melissa in a pumpkin patch to walk towards the room. He smiled gratefully and walked around the room. The walls were sky blue, sponged with white paint. Charcoal-colored pillows and a silver duvet cover adorned the full-sized bed. On the nightstand closest to the window on the far side of the room was a functioning alarm clock. He nodded in approval and Artemis continued to the next room.

"Okay Seto. This can be your room."

In size, this room was just as big as Mokuba's. Decoratively speaking, it was a polar opposite. The walls were ivory from the ceiling to about halfway down. From the middle of the wall to the baseboards, blue-and-cream-striped wallpaper lined the room. The full-sized bed was covered with a cerulean blue comforter and white pillows. Golden statues of Chinese dragons sat gracefully on the nightstands and dresser. Seto looked at Artemis in wonder.

"Artemis, I don't know what to say," he said in surprise.

"You don't need to say anything."

Seto looked around.

"Did you think of me at all?"

"No."

-Flashback-

_I hope the ring you gave to her turns her finger green_

_I hope when you're in bed with her, you think of me_

"Finally, the last box," Artemis said aloud to the emptiness of her new apartment. She reached into her pocket for the box cutter and sliced the clear packing tape on all sides. She lifted up the flaps and folded them back so that they stayed open. She removed a layer of bubble wrap and Styrofoam peanuts and gasped. Lying on top of the picture frames and CDs was a white, letter-sized envelope. Her name was scrawled across the top in an even handwriting she knew to belong to one person.

"Seto," she muttered angrily. "You son of a bitch."

_I would never wish bad things, but I don't wish you well_

_Could you tell, by the flames that burned your words_

Artemis knew what the contents of that envelope held in store for her. It was most likely something dictated by none other than Seto Kaiba himself, but transcribed by his faithful secretary who only did as he pleased because she had three children and a husband who was on medical retirement. It was most likely a "sincere" letter telling her how much he "regretted" not being able to come with her. It was probably some half-ass excuse that she had heard before.

_I never read your letter_

'_Cause I knew what you'd say_

_Give me that Sunday school answer_

_Try and make it all okay_

"I have more important duties here". "What would people think"? "I have a reputation to uphold". Yadda, yadda, yadda. Apparently, having a child wasn't high on his list of priorities. Then again, it wasn't really high on her list either…up until now. She sighed and set the envelope aside on her nightstand, not really intending to read its contents.

_Does it hurt to know I'll never be there_

_Bet it sucks to see my face everywhere_

_It was you who chose to end it like you did_

_I was the last to know_

Later that night, Artemis stood out on the balcony of her apartment. Her forearms rested on the wooden railing. The envelope she had found was clutched in her hand, the edges damp from her clammy grip. She sighed and held the envelope at an arm's length.

"Tell me Seto Kaiba, did you honestly think that I didn't know about you and your blonde friend? Pfft! Come on. It was all over the papers. Seto Kaiba and his new girlfriend, a real page-turner. I know it was all for publicity."

_You knew exactly what you would do_

_And don't say, you simply lost your way_

_She may believe you, but I never will_

_Never again_

"Tell me Seto," she continued, speaking to the letter as if it were the writer himself, "were you with her that night? Were you with her when you were supposed to meet me at the train station? I guess so. I guess that's just how you work. You hide the dirty laundry under the bed hoping that no one will find it."

_You wrote me in a letter  
You couldn't say it right to my face  
Give me that Sunday school answer  
Repent yourself away_

Artemis pulled a lighter out of her back pocket and lit the corner of the envelope. She held it gingerly by the opposite corner and watched the flames consume it. When the flames grew, she dropped it onto the concrete below.

"Good riddance," she said.

-End Flashback-

"Good night Seto," Artemis said stiffly, turning to walk down the hall towards her bedroom. She was halted when Seto's hand darted out and snatched her by the wrist.

"Artemis, I want to talk." He pulled her inside and closed the door. He led her to the bed and sat down, pulling her onto the mattress next to him. "Tell me what's been going on with you since I last saw you."

Artemis cocked an eyebrow.

"You know, for a man who just found out that his daughter died, you're holding up really well."

"Artemis, please. I'm trying to be diplomatic. I don't want to cause any trouble. To be quite honest, I'm not affected because I didn't have the chance to know her. It's hard to feel pain for someone you didn't really know."

"And who's fault is that?"

"Artemis, you don't need to be so hostile."

Artemis glared daggers at Seto, who was unusually calm. It was bugging her. She closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and opened her eyes.

"You're right. I'm sorry," she said. "It's just…hmm…I just don't know what else to do. I came here to tell you about Melissa. I didn't plan on anything after that. I certainly didn't think it was going to be so soon."

"What do you mean?"

"Seto, come with me for a second."

The two rose and he followed her into the next room. This was the master bedroom. The walls were light green with olive green drapes. The bedding was white with stripes that matched the drapes. A rocking chair with green gingham cushions sat in the furthest corner of the room. The furniture in the bedroom matched the furniture in the living room.

Artemis crossed the room and sat on the far side of the bed. Seto saw her reach into a drawer and pull out a picture frame. She wiped the frame with her sleeve and set it in her lap. She looked over her shoulder at Seto and gestured for him to come over to her. When he sat down, the frame was face down in her lap.

"Seto, there's something I think you should know." She flipped the frame over. It was a picture of her and Melissa, but there was a third person in the picture. "Seto, that's Chris."

Seto's eyes scanned the picture. It was taken in a studio, that much was certain. Both Artemis and Melissa wore their hair in half ponytails and wore white dresses. Artemis's dress had a yellow floral print and a yellow sash around the waist. Melissa's dress was plain white with a lavender sash. Seto smiled faintly. The little girl, who was probably around five or six, did have his eyes. Apart from that, she looked just like her mother.

"She's beautiful," he said. His eyes drifted to the third person, Chris. He frowned. Chris was handsome, no doubt. He had ash brown hair and bright green eyes. He was lean with an athletic build. He wore a white polo shirt and denims. "And this is Chris? What does he do?"

"He's a fireman with the NYPD," she replied.

Seto nodded and continued to scan the picture. The three were sitting on a white porch swing. Chris and Artemis sat side by side and Melissa sat on their lap. Seto nodded slowly.

_'This could have been me_,' he thought. Then his eyes locked onto a certain point in the photo.

"You were married?"

"Engaged," she corrected. She pulled a fine gold chain out from beneath the neckline of her jacket, on which hung the most beautiful ring imaginable. She undid the necklace, slid the ring off, and replaced the chain around her neck. She slipped the ring onto her finger and held her hand up in front of Seto's face. "We're going to get married when I return home."

"When will that be?"

"I don't know. It could be next month. It could be next week. It could be tomorrow. It could be next year. It depends."

"On?"

"On what keeps me here. I did what I came here to do, so technically speaking, there is nothing keeping me here anymore."

"What about me?"

"What about you?"

Seto opened his mouth to say something, but what could he say? He wasn't there. The emotional connection that they had once established was gone. She had someone now and there was no room for him. He let the woman he loved slip through his fingers and now she was lost for good.

"Well Artemis," he said as he rose to his feet, "I'm happy for you. Good night."

"Good night," she said as he closed the door behind him and headed to his room.

* * *

A/N: There you go. The long-awaited update to Broken Bridges. Hope you enjoyed it. I await your reviews... 


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: Before I begin this chapter, I would like to thank the most recent reviewers for reminding me about this story. After such a long hiatus, I'm glad to be writing again. I hope you, my readers, find this chapter to your liking. Read on.

Chapter 6

Artemis woke up the following morning around 6:30. She looked at the framed picture of her with Melissa and Chris, and a sad smile graced her lips.

"I miss you both," she whispered. She kissed her fingertips and brushed them across Chris and Melissa's faces. With a sigh she rolled over onto her back and looked toward the heavens. "Especially you, baby girl."

She wiped a tear from her eye and slipped out of bed. She walked into the master bathroom to freshen up. As she brushed her hair, she thought about the next step.

"I did what I came here to do, so technically speaking, there is nothing keeping me here anymore," she remembered herself saying.

She gave herself a quick once-over in the full-length mirror, and after taking a deep breath, walked into the living room. She was somewhat surprised to find the living area unoccupied. She looked into the bedrooms and also found them empty. For a brief second, she was upset.

"Who leaves without some kind of goodbye?" she said aloud. She crossed her arms over her chest and leaned against a wall. "Well, now I don't have to kick anyone out."

Meanwhile, Seto had convinced Mokuba to use a pay phone to call a tow truck. As they waited, Mokuba perched himself on the hood of the jet-black vehicle while Seto leaned against the driver's door in annoyance.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Mokuba asked after a few minutes of silence.

"I was trying to be a good role model for you. Getting a girl pregnant is definitely not considered a good example of moral behavior."

"Yeah, and leaving her is? She was pregnant. You knew. You didn't even have the dignity to dump her. You traded her in for Svetlana," Mokuba cried in disgust. "I don't know what I'm more disappointed in you for—the fact that you dumped your pregnant girlfriend or that you didn't have the balls to dump her and instead started dating Sven," he added mockingly.

"Her name was Svetlana," Seto corrected. He took a deep breath. "But you're right. I was more worried about myself and what I needed. Who knows? If I had been a part of that baby's life, maybe she wouldn't have died."

"Oh, now you're blaming Artie for your child's death? Real smooth, bro."

"No! That's not what I mean and you know it! I could have bought the best nannies and the best doctors…"

"Is money all that matters to you?! The best of anything could not have saved her. Artie was not a careless mother. Melissa was a small child that was in the wrong place at the wrong time. No one could have changed that. And you know what, I'm kinda glad you didn't know her. At least Artie had a father who could care for her and love her. You would have worked all the time and never been home. Hell, that's what you've been doing for years. Why would it change because you have one more person to care for?"

"Now, see here," Seto began.

"NO! No! I'm not going to 'see here'. I'm disappointed in you, Seto. Big time." Without another word, Mokuba hopped off the hood of the car just as the tow truck pulled up. He walked out of the parking lot and down the street towards Artemis's suite.

Seto watched Mokuba walk away. As much as it hurt him to admit, the younger Kaiba was right. He had, for lack of a better word, fucked up. He made his bed, and he slept in it.

"Mr. Kaiba," the driver said, interrupting Seto's thought process.

"Yeah, sure. Whatever you need," he replied dismissively. He decided not to worry about Mokuba and hoped that his younger brother wouldn't be mad at him for too long.

--Meanwhile, in Artemis's apartment—

"Chris, honey, it's me. I'm not sure what time it is over there, but it's about 8:00 in the morning here. I miss you and I have good news. He knows, so I can come home. Call me back."

As she hung up the phone, she heard a knock at the door. "Come in," she called. She was slightly taken aback when Mokuba walked through the doorway, fuming as if he found out the Chicago Cubs beat the New York Yankees in the World Series. (A/N: Sorry for the reference, but I can imagine that if this were to really happen, a lot of people would be mad).

"He never officially broke up with you, did he?"

"I beg your pardon?"

"Seto never officially broke up with you after he found out you were pregnant. I remember, just before you moved away, he started seeing some Swedish thing named Svetlana. He was running away from his problems and he left you alone. I always liked you the best, out of all the other ones he's dated. You actually hung out with me. And just think, if you two had stayed together, we could have hung out a lot more…"

Artemis gently placed a finger on Mokuba's lips to silence him.

"Mokuba, calm down. Why are you so upset about something that happened forever ago?"

"Because if my brother wasn't such a jackass, things would have been different. You wouldn't be so damaged, Seto wouldn't be so isolated…"

"Whoa! What?! Sweetie, just because my daughter died, that doesn't mean I'm damaged. Seto broke my heart. It happens in every high school relationship. We were young and foolish. Now, I want you to know that I loved your brother. I never hated him for what he did, and in a way, I understand why. But I found someone who truly loves me and cared for me when I needed him to. I probably would have never had that if I was with your brother, especially at that age. I healed. Melissa's death, that wound will never heal. I'll have more children of my own after Chris and I get married, and that will help."

"But what about Seto?"

"Mokuba, what Seto and I had was in the past. I've moved on, and so has he. I have no future with him."

"But…"

"No 'buts', Mokuba," Artemis firmly stated. "End of discussion. I'm leaving at the end of next week. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some packing to do."

As she closed the door behind him, Mokuba whispered to himself, "What if he hasn't moved on?"

-End chapter-

A/N: So there you have it. Let me know what you think and if I should write Chapter 7.


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